Beauty in the beast
By Risidra Mendis
By Risidra Mendis
He is better known for his watercolour paintings of old and new buildings of Sri Lanka. But for Robert Sedgley, who first started painting with oils, a change to watercolours has made this talented artist explore new avenues in terms of drawings. Apart from his subjects of temples and historic monuments, Sedgley paints the everyday sights of buildings that most people will overlook and take for granted.
Sedgley's paintings are different to other artists as he pays attention to objects such as signboards, water tanks, air-conditioning units and concrete telephone posts which other artist might edit out as being ugly and not worthy of attention. However, if Sedgley feels the object to be an interesting shape or division, a splash of colour, a curve or a line, he will include it in his paintings.
''Evidence of decay, peeling and discoloured paintwork, broken window frames,and grass and plants growing from the roofs are are included in my paintings. I include these not to depict 'romantic ruins' but as an aspect of the passage of time and as organic markings on the rigid framework of the buildings,'' explained Sedgley. By seeking beauty in even the most unlikely of places, he recalls the story of the Indian sage whose disciples, in an attempt to arouse in him the feeling of disgust, showed him the decaying corpse of a dog. ''The sage, far from being horrified, simply remarked 'What beautiful teeth.' ''
Sedgley often takes a frontal viewpoint which emphasises the geometrical and abstract qualities of his subject and allows him to contain, within the framework of the whole, incidental elements such as figures, the paraphernalia of the shops spilling onto the pavement and the passing traffic of the street.
''When everyone is rushing about their daily business, too preoccupied and too anxious to 'stop and stare' it is the artist who will spend hours on a street corner weighing up the relative proportions of a doorway and drain pipe, the space between the windows, the flicker of light and the dance of shadows across the wall, and open our eyes to the wonderful and marvelous that is near at hand, waiting to be plucked out of the ordinary facts of life'' says Sedgley.
Robert Sedgley's exhibition of over 30 watercolour paintings will be held at the Artists Gallery, 18A Sarasavi Gardens, Nawala Road, Nugegoda from August 5 to 15.
Sedgley's paintings are different to other artists as he pays attention to objects such as signboards, water tanks, air-conditioning units and concrete telephone posts which other artist might edit out as being ugly and not worthy of attention. However, if Sedgley feels the object to be an interesting shape or division, a splash of colour, a curve or a line, he will include it in his paintings.
''Evidence of decay, peeling and discoloured paintwork, broken window frames,and grass and plants growing from the roofs are are included in my paintings. I include these not to depict 'romantic ruins' but as an aspect of the passage of time and as organic markings on the rigid framework of the buildings,'' explained Sedgley. By seeking beauty in even the most unlikely of places, he recalls the story of the Indian sage whose disciples, in an attempt to arouse in him the feeling of disgust, showed him the decaying corpse of a dog. ''The sage, far from being horrified, simply remarked 'What beautiful teeth.' ''
Sedgley often takes a frontal viewpoint which emphasises the geometrical and abstract qualities of his subject and allows him to contain, within the framework of the whole, incidental elements such as figures, the paraphernalia of the shops spilling onto the pavement and the passing traffic of the street.
''When everyone is rushing about their daily business, too preoccupied and too anxious to 'stop and stare' it is the artist who will spend hours on a street corner weighing up the relative proportions of a doorway and drain pipe, the space between the windows, the flicker of light and the dance of shadows across the wall, and open our eyes to the wonderful and marvelous that is near at hand, waiting to be plucked out of the ordinary facts of life'' says Sedgley.
Robert Sedgley's exhibition of over 30 watercolour paintings will be held at the Artists Gallery, 18A Sarasavi Gardens, Nawala Road, Nugegoda from August 5 to 15.